Moto Droid X gets midnight launches

Verizon as promised has launched the Motorola Droid X, its new Android flagship. The smartphone reportedly triggered lines in the "hundreds," although Verizon implied this was across the US and not at individual stores. Some stores opened at midnight; Electronista has heard reports of lineups elsewhere, but in relatively small numbers of dozens or less.

The full-touch phone isn't facing a demand shortage online, as new orders don't have any shipping delays.

Verizon had already predicted ample stock ahead of the launch, but the availability may have been dictated by supply issues with other phones and by Verizon's own phone strategy. Samsung's AMOLED shortage has hurt most Android phones, but even the LCD-based Evo 4G on Sprint has also been facing supply problems relating to its display. By touting the HTC Droid Incredible so heavily less than three months ago but being unable to supply enough phones, Verizon has created an audience that either already has a recent Android phone or would rather wait for their original order than switch.

The news hints that the Droid X may have relatively tepid sales compared to the iPhone 4, which despite its antenna issues resulted in 1.7 million iPhones shipped over three days and sellouts that won't see new online orders arrive for three weeks.

The Droid X is considered Motorola's new class leader and has a 1GHz OMAP processor, a 4.3-inch LCD and an eight-megapixel camera. It runs Android 2.1 with a custom Blur interface, although 2.2 and Flash 10.1 are rumored to arrive later in August. Verizon's most distinctive selling point today is a Wi-Fi hotspot creation feature, although it needs $20 per month and is capped at 2GB of data.

By Electronista Staff